6.30.2012

I've been visiting my sister this weekend...and we're been on a couple of junking adventures...today we went to a barn-barn-barn sale (yes, that's three barns on one property). Since I've been paring down, my eye was going more for quality junk...rather than quantity. This sale was out in the country...and obviously at the end of the road...

A few of my finds from today's barn sale and yesterday's yard/thrift store sales...

Always love rusted metal...these locks and the metal box are sitting on a metal desk that I picked up for $2.00...

ironstone and silverplate is dear to my heart...the english ironstone tureen was only $1.00...

A bit of color is good...I picked up quite a few keys...good for art projects

and the rusted locker baskets and the green painted wood screen...perfect display items for art shows this summer...

I have one more day before I head home...let's see what else I can find...

6.29.2012

Since its almost July 1, you would assume that one would be basking in the warmth of summer...here in the Pacific NW, we are experiencing a delayed spring...its plenty green outside, just not very warm...or sunny...yet.

But that has not deterred me from making our home feel more summer-like...about two weeks ago, I was inspired by my trip to Faded Elegance to lighten up...bringing in more white and light and banishing the dark. After a day or two of rearranging/restyling/reviving the first floor of our home, I feel ready for settling down with a gin & tonic, kicking off my shoes and indulging in a good summer novel...to wit-

Gone are the brown and gray wool blankets, the dark wood lamp bases and the black iron side table...replaced with yellow & light teal blue paisley pillows, a bright teal rusted radiator cover now a charming side table and two light colored lamps (one a stone base and the other a ceramic base). Changing the lamp shades to a nubby linen helps to shed more light into the room.

I also replaced our drab tan footstool with this 36" square ottoman with the white matelesse slipcover that I picked up at Faded Elegance...

Its plenty big - everyone can put their feet up regardless of where they sit...and there's room for a vintage wire basket to hold reading material...and a cotton knit throw (because, who am I fooling...it will still be a tad cool now and then!)

I also bought a white painted table on casters...thinking it would work as a sofa table...but the scale was too small.

I put it in the front hallway and will keep the display here to a minimum...with the table on casters, it will be easy to wheel wherever I need it for photo shoots in the house...given the dreary days we can have, a mobile shooting station is a plus! For now, it has daisies and baseballs...both of which speak summer to me...homage paid to Linda of Itsy Bits and Pieces who inspired me to dig out the baseballs and put them on display...

I also rearranged the artwork on the living room wall...the vintage Paris postcards that were my mother's had been hanging in the same place for the last ten years...it was time for a change. I composed a salon-type installation using the theme of birds...though its a combination of original art with reprints, old museum matting with contemporary framing, it all works because the subject remains the same.

Even the simplest details echo my bird and art theme...a slew of used paintbrushes fill a tall glass vase while a charming old book with an abandoned nest are placed on a vintage white enamelware tray...

Its the details that can make a room...more about such details to come...

6.27.2012

You might have noticed that I have a regular icon on my blog sidebar, "on my nightstand". I'm always interested in what others are reading so thought I would let you know what I've been perusing...

I have three new books that I wanted to share -

Fresh American Spaces by Annie Selke is a design book filled with ideas for making your space unique and a little out of the ordinary...I like that...

Mastering Type by Denise Bosler is a guide to typography for print and web design...as you might imagine, I am a nut for letters and numbers...and all things related to type. I plan to drool over the typography examples and pick up a few pointers on improving the design of my blog...

Though not new to the design scene, I have finally picked up a copy of Holly Becker's Decorate...jammed packed with 1,000 ideas from professionals, I love the inspiration...and the layout of the book...

Well, this should keep me occupied for a little while...what are you reading this summer?

Often I begin with an idea...the collage grows from that initial thought...and I usually give the completed piece a simple title at the end. With my current project, I started with a title, "a collection of the heart" and I am composing the elements based on that theme/title...a different approach...keeps the pistons firing on all cylinders!

I'll be posting a photo of the completed work...when its finished...In the meantime...I hope that you'll mark your calendar to attend one of the art shows listed above...would love to see you...

6.24.2012

I've been participating in The Altered Page's recognition of artists called The Pulse...its a series of activities/questions/answers/images of a large group of selected individuals, designed to highlight the online multi-media art community...and I'm pleased to be one of 130 participating. The first three chapters were posted earlier...this fourth segment, called Still Life, asked artists to share a still life photograph that they composed...you can view my response (plus many other wonderful compositions) over at The Altered Page today...I can't thank Seth Apter enough for including me in this group...its been stimulating to see all the different interpretations of creativity...I encourage you to check it out for yourself...

6.20.2012

Today is the first day of summer...and the sun is actually shining and it is warmer than 50 degrees...you may not think much of this...but in the Pacific NW, summer takes it dear sweet time in arriving...June is known for being wet and cold (mmm, how does that differ from the previous 9 months...well, in June there's some hope it will get warmer and drier...if you ever visit here, come in August or September - its heaven then!)

I had been thinking about changing up things on the first floor of our home...we've been here 10 years and things were looking a little tired...figured with summer's arrival, it would motivate me...but on Tuesday morning, as I sat in my wool sweater at my computer, I decided to jump ahead...if the weather didn't feel like summer, I was going to make my home feel like summer. Everything was so dark...and I still had the wool blankets and heavy pillows out...it needed to lighten up...and I needed a little visual inspiration...so I drove over to Faded Elegance, to visit my friend/owner Kimberly McIlrath and see what I could find...

The store was lovely as ever...

I am a sucker for letters and numbers...

I was on the lookout for "light" and "white"....and though this fits both of those requirements, it was a little too ruffled for me...

These two ended up being "just right"...a small painted white table (on casters - my fav!) and a large square ottoman with a white matelasse slipcover...

I popped both of them in the back of my Subaru and drove home totally jazzed...but that's all for now...because the sun is out...and it is the longest day of the year...

6.18.2012

Lately I've been working on a couple of new ideas with my art collages...the idea started here...and has been nurtured with my online class, Beyond Layers...where there has been a lot of combining words with images...I am also taken with working with these 5" squares of wood...trying to be concise yet not too complex within a small framework...all of these collages are for my upcoming show, Fresh Paint, here in Everett...

I've added interesting quotes along the sides of each wood piece...another surface to consider in the mix...here's the left & right sides of the #3 collage...

"Three o'clock is always too late or too early for anything you want to do." Jean-Paul Sarte

6.15.2012

Its time for another Easy 1-2-3 project (see previous 1-2-3 projects here , here, and here and one more here...) projects where I take common materials and end up with a simple upcycled design.

One:Cork rounds from the garden department at Lowe's...meant to be used under a plant pot so that there's no water ring left behind...one side is cork to absorb the water drips and the other side is some sort of composite material...the odd colored square is where the UPC code sticker was...it will be covered up so no matter...because I'll be flipping them over to use as coasters so the cork side protects the tabletop.

Two:Paper scraps from the top of my work table...often times, I don't want to over think a project...just use what's at hand...for the mini-collages I created for the composite side of the coasters, I used whatever scraps I had immediately available...most likely leftover from art collages I have been working on...

Two & one-half:After I composed a mini-collage on each coaster, glued all the paper into place, waited until it was dry, sanded the edges and the surface, it was ready for two coats of polyurethane...I wanted to make sure that the surface could stand up to heavy duty happy hour use!

Did you know that you should never shake a can of polyurethane or varnish? Shaking will trap air bubbles in the mixture that will be transferred to the surface and will dry in place, giving a bumpy texture to your work... always stir gently, making sure that you mix in the bottom sediment well.

Three:In no time, I had a set of six coasters...ready to protect tabletops and add a little interest under one's drink...

I added a strip of adhesive copper tape to the outer edge of one coaster...just for a little extra shine...

6.13.2012

Its time once again for the Annual Artists' Garage Sale at the Schack Art Center in Downtown Everett...Saturday, June 16 from 9am to 4pm. I'll have a booth inside the center...with plenty of stuff I am cleaning out of my studio...

In addition to supplies, I'll also have some of my original multi-media collages...at rock bottom prices...and then there are 99 other artists...selling all sorts of goodies...hope to see you there...get all the details HERE...

6.10.2012

The Everett Farmer's Market is finally open! Held every Sunday from June to October, its a regular stop for the Southern Man and I. Not only do we live in a micro-clime with an obnoxious wind and little southern exposure in our yard, but I really do have a black thumb...so we've decided to patronize the local food artisans/farmers instead...today was our first visit of the season...

Strawberries picked this morning and asparagus harvested just yesterday came home with us...and we had a great lunch of asian spring rolls along with some Mexican torta...eating local has never been easier...or tastier...

BTW...my photo collage was created with the help of PicMonkey...now that Picnik is no more, PicMonkey has stepped up to fill the need of easy online photo editing...I'm loving the variety of templates and options...makes anyone look like a pro!

6.09.2012

I am well acquainted with dust bunnies...its not that I am averse to cleaning...but when you have a 96lb golden retriever, you have dust bunnies...even after you vacuum...they seem to multiply instantly.Here is the culprit himself...Calvin...with one of his favorite bunnies...

When I heard that Thistlewood Farm and Eclectically Vintage were starting up a new blog titled, A Dust Bunny Life, I was there...as I soon found out, it is not a sharing of dust and dander tales...but rather a potpourri of easy projects, using the simplest of supplies and taking minimal time...

My clipboard chalkboard project is featured today...do pop over and check it out...believe me, those dust bunnies swirling around on the dining room floor...they can wait...

6.06.2012

During my recent trip to the Farm Chicks show, I did more than just salivate over the displays and the vintage goods...I did pick up a few treasures of my own...starting with this recycled art necklace from Lisa Souers...

Mine is the "ART" pendent made from an old pocket watch case...my travelling partner Liz picked up the glitter heart necklace...also made by Lisa Souers...

I was on the lookout for smaller items...vintage pieces that could be incorporated into my multi-media collage artwork...or pieces that would make an interesting photo montage...

these brown bottles and well-loved paint brushes fit the bill...

I couldn't resist doing a little photo-styling in our hotel room...the muslin covered ironing board and the sheer curtains at the window contributed to the perfect set-up...I picked up a couple of rusty bed springs...in case I want to make a few more of my upcycled flower vases...

6.04.2012

This past weekend I travelled east over the mountains...and through the wheat fields...to Spokane and the annual Farm Chicks Antique Show. Now in its 13th year, it has become one of the premier vintage events in the country. I had never been...so when my friend Liz mentioned it a few months back, we began planning...

As we drove across the state Friday morning, I received the pleasant news that I was the recipient of two early admission tickets...courtesy of a last minute giveaway by Katelyn Foutch via her blog, Foutch Coutch.

Katelyn is a professional photographer who does work for Serena Thompson, brainchild/genius/cheerleader behind The Farm Chicks...Katelyn had two extra tickets and decided to share the love...it was the perfect start to the day (yes, even though it was pouring rain...we were at the start of the entrance line and there were Krispy Kreme donuts) with the extra bonus of Katelyn being the sweetest peach you could ever imagine...that's her in the middle with the red polka dot bandana in her hair...surrounded by friends and family who were all part of this Idaho troupe...

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all rights reserved. please do not reproduce, use or copy my images, photos, artwork or text without my express permission. email inquiries to amy_duncan@yahoo.com.
creating art is not an easy process - thanks for giving the artist the respect they deserve.